MLB Targets: May 25th

Thursday night brings us a short, five-game slate. Let’s dive right into all the information, and, as always, you can get me on the ol’ Twitter machine @SBuchanan24.

Pitcher

UPDATE: Jacob deGrom WILL NOT start tonight. Rafael Montero will take the mound for the Mets.

Stud

Jacob deGrom – NYM vs. SD – $12,100 – This game is worth watching due to weather, but if they can squeeze it in, deGrom is in a terrific spot against the Padres. He has been his best at home this season, averaging 25.1 FPPG with a .280 wOBA and a K/9 of 13.1. As we’ve stated many, many times before, the Padres are very prone to strikeouts and own a 24.4 K%, which ranks the second highest in the league. If the rain holds off, deGrom has the most favorable matchup on the night by far.

Other Options – Kenta Maeda ($8,800)

Value

Robbie Ray – ARI vs. MIL – $8,600 – Ray is arguably on the cheaper side of pitchers tonight when you consider the $12,100 salary of deGrom. He’s been near-lights-out on the road this year, averaging 28.4 FPPG with a .218 wOBA and a K/9 of 11.6. Like deGrom, Ray has great strikeout potential in this game, taking on a Brewers club that owns a 25.2 K% against lefties, which is the second highest in the league.

Other Options – Michael Wacha ($8,200)

Catcher

Stud

Jonathan Lucroy – TEX vs. BOS – $4,100 – Lucroy was struggling at the plate to begin the season, but he’s turned that around as of late. He’s averaging 7.5 FPPG over his last 10 games and has a favorable matchup against Drew Pomeranz tonight. Against lefties on the road, Lucroy owns a .348 wOBA with a .522 SLG.

Other Options Yasmani Grandal ($3,800)

Value

Sandy Leon – BOS vs. TEX – $3,400 – Leon is another catcher that was struggling at the plate to start the season but has since started to turn that around. I like him tonight as he’ll likely be low-owned but has exhibited power at Fenway Park in the past. Facing Nick Martinez, who’s allowed five of his seven home runs on the road this season, Leon is very capable of blasting one at Fenway.

Other Options – Alex Avila ($3,400)

First Base

Stud

Miguel Cabrera – DET vs. HOU – $4,500 – With Mike Fiers allowing as many home runs as he has, it’s hard not to like Cabrera here. Fiers will enter this start having allowed 17 in eight starts. Pitching in Houston certainly diminishes that number a bit, but he’s still allowed six in three home starts. Cabrera checks in with a .320 wOBA against righties with a .426 SLG thus far.

Other Options – Jay Bruce ($4,700)

Value

Victor Martinez – DET vs. HOU – $3,800 – After showcasing Miguel Cabrera, I go and talk about Victor Martinez? What gives? Well, if you’re doing a GPP stack of the Tigers tonight (great idea) Martinez is a nice way to mix it up, as people will naturally gravitate toward Cabrera. Martinez possesses some power himself and owns a modest .313 wOBA against righties. With that being said, he’s almost always low-owned, and he could be a nice way to boost that stack.

Other Options – T.J. Rivera ($2,900)

Second Base

Stud

Jose Altuve – HOU vs. DET – $4,800 – You usually don’t see many hitters being recommended against Justin Verlander, but his road numbers beg to differ. Verlander hasn’t looked like himself, averaging just 11.9 fantasy points in five road starts with five of his six home runs allowed. Altuve continues to be an on-base machine and owns a .367 wOBA against righties this season.

Other Options – Dustin Pedroia ($4,200)

Value

Chase Utley – LAD vs. STL – $3,200 – Utley is cheap enough to consider, and could be a decent punt play at second base. Michael Wacha has had some issues with lefties on the road, posting a .359 wOBA with a .449 SLG.

Other Options – Neil Walker ($3,400)

Third Base

Stud

Jake Lamb – ARI vs. MIL – $5,300 – Zach Davies has REALLY struggled at home this season and is facing the wrong team to be having that issue. At Miller Park against lefties, Davies has allowed .366 wOBA with a .533 SLG with three of his eight total home runs allowed. Of course, Lamb has been destroying right-handed pitching, posting a .537 wOBA with a .854 SLG with five of his 13 home runs.

Other Options – Jose Reyes ($3,900)

Value

Hernan Perez – MIL vs. ARI – $3,600 – I most certainly like Robbie Ray tonight, but this one is for the people who aren’t on board with that notion. Perez is one of the Brewers’ hitters that doesn’t get the praise that Eric Thames or Ryan Braun do. Perez is posting a .344 wOBA against lefties with a .486 SLG. He’ll likely be a low-owned option to choose from tonight.

Other Options – Marwin Gonzalez ($3,600)

Shortstop

Stud

Corey Seager – LAD vs. STL – $4,500 – Seager is in the same boat as Utley, trying to pounce on the struggles Wacha has had against lefties. As I mentioned, Wacha has allowed a .359 wOBA with a .409 SLG against lefties on the road. Seager, meanwhile, is sporting a .337 wOBA against righties at home with a .384 OBP.

Other Options – Xander Bogaerts ($4,800)

Value

Elvis Andrus – TEX vs. BOS – $3,800 – Andrus has been hitting fairly well as of late, averaging 7.4 FPPG over his last 10 games. He’ll face off against Drew Pomeranz tonight, who has allowed a .323 wOBA at home thus far. I like Andrus as a sneaky play at shortstop who owns a .347 wOBA against lefties on the road with a .529 SLG.

Other Options – Nick Ahmed ($3,400)

Outfield

Stud

Mookie Betts – BOS vs. TEX – $4,900 – Betts has seen a price drop recently, as this is his first time under $5,000 in quite some time. Taking on Nick Martinez, who is prone to allowing home runs on the road, Betts batting leadoff is always an option on any slate. He’s yet to hit a home run against a right-handed pitcher at home, but he’s sporting a .308 wOBA with a .358 OBP. His early season struggles seem to be in the past, as Betts is averaging 10.7 FPPG over his last 10 games.

Other Options – Michael Conforto ($5,100), J.D. Martinez ($4,600)

Value

Tyler Collins – DET vs. HOU – ($2,700) – Collins is dirt cheap tonight and is in line for that stellar matchup against Fiers. We’ve talked about Fiers struggles against righties, but lefties haven’t exactly been a cakewalk for him either. Fiers is posting a .332 wOBA against them with six home runs allowed. If you need to save some salary, Collins could come into play.

Other Options – George Springer ($3,700), Kiké Hernandez ($2,900)

I am a promoter at DraftKings and am also an avid fan and user (my username is Steveazors) and may sometimes play on my personal account in the games that I offer advice on. Although I have expressed my personal view on the games and strategies above, they do not necessarily reflect the view(s) of DraftKings and I may also deploy different players and strategies than what I recommend above.

Latest Headlines From

Jacob deGrom • SP • NYM

Jacob deGrom continues late surge for Cy Young

Last season, deGrom ($11,500) ran away with the National League Cy Young. He had a historic season and his 1.70 ERA was one of the best marks in the history of the league. That kind of performance is tough to replicate, but he's been on the mark since the All-Star break. He has a sub 2.00 ERA in the second half of the season and has allowed two or fewer earned runs in 11 of his 13 starts. Tonight's performance was one of his best of the year. Pitching against the Dodgers, the best team in the National League, deGrom worked seven shutout innings and tallied eight strikeouts. He finished with 29.35 DKFP and could be on his way to back to back Cy Young Awards.

Eduardo Rodriguez strikes out 12 in pitchers' duel

Rodriguez ($10,300) went back-and-forth dueling with Aaron Nola ($9,500) tonight. Both allowed just a single run and the game came down to the bullpens. Neither starter got a decision although Rodriguez had the edge in the department we care about, fantasy points. The dozen strikeouts for E-Rod are a season-high and he scored 33.4 DKFP even though he didn't get the win bonus. On the other side of the game, Nola was no slouch. He pitched seven innings, striking out nine batters against a potent Boston offense and scored 27.55 DKFP. The lose for Philly was costly and moves it 3.5 games out of the final Wild Card spot. The Phillies need a near-flawless finish to the season to clinch a playoff birth.

Brett Gardner homers twice as Yankees roll 13-3

The Yankees continue to slug their way to the postseason and homered five times on their way to a 13-3 rout in Toronto. Gardner ($4,100; 39 DKFP) was the only player with multiple home runs, going 3-for-5 with two home runs and five RBI. Luke Voit ($4,600; 29 DKFP) went 2-for-3 with a home run, Gleyber Torres ($4,800; 20 DKFP) went 1-for-3 with a home run, and Mike Ford ($4,100; 16 DKFP) got in on the action coming off the bench with a home run in his only at-bat. The Yankees have 20 homers in their past six games and 285 on the season. They have already broken their record for most team home runs from last season and are ahead of the Twins in a race to set the new mark.